Bournemouth started out as Boscombe St Johns Institute FC way back in 1890, later becoming Bournemouth and Boscombe Athletic FC – quite a mouthful. It was only 1972 that the club became known as AFC Bournemouth. Their home ground is now known as the Vitality Stadium but fans know it as Dean Court, named after the family that gave them the plot of land for the ground in 1910.

In their long History, Bournemouth has hovered around the third tier of the English League, but things got a lot worse for the club in 2008. The club was forced into administration and they were penalised heavily by the F.A, fans feared that the club would fold completely. What happened after this will be one of the biggest turnarounds in Football History. New owners brought stability and Eddie Howe was brought in as manager in the 2008/09 season and they avoided being knocked out of the league completely. The only way from here was up and by 2015, Bournemouth was playing in the English Premier League – one of the Greatest Escapes Ever.

Pundits did not give Bournemouth much chance of staying in the top flight and their first season in the EPL was a fight to stay out of the relegation teams. But their second season showed what they were really made of, after a tough start they finished the season with an unbeaten run in the last five games and secured ninth place. Last season they finished thirteenth, but Howe did not seem happy with that so it will be great to see how things turn out for Bournemouth this season.

Premier League Betting Opportunities With AFC Bournemouth

Bottom Half Finish

Eddie Howe has done a tremendous job at Bournemouth, this season is their fourth straight run in the top flight. But it will be tough with some of the newly promoted teams looking very strong. Could well be a bottom half finish for Bournemouth.

8/11

Odds on AFC Bournemoth finishing in the bottom half of the Premier League (Betfair) updated 4th February 2019.

Avoid Relegation

Bournemouth finished 13th last season and in the top ten the season before. Things may be tougher this season but it looks like a safe bet to say they will stay up again this time round.

Callum Wilson – Top Bournemouth Goalscorer

Wilson has shown glimpses of his potential in the previous two seasons for The Cherries. Unfortunately injury has halted his development during this time. With 10 goals only half way through the 18/19 season and he has already beaten his scoring record of the past two seasons and will be only looking to add to this tally.

AFC Bournemouth Stats

Key Players & Betting

Junior Stanislas

Midfielder

Junior Stanislas followed Eddie Howe from Burnley and has been a key member of the teams' success, some would say he was the player of the season last year. He had niggling problems with injuries last season and missed the final few games after undergoing knee surgery. Fans will be hoping that he is fully fit and raring to go for the start of the new season so that he can bring his magic back to the team.

Artur Boruc

Goalkeeper

Boruc has the No1 jersey for Bournemouth, he was voted supporter's Player of the Year for the 2016/17 season. He is a firm favorite with the fans after producing some heroic moments in games against the likes of Manchester UTD, the ex-Poland international keeper is a real talent and it will be interesting to see him lift his game after the introduction of Asmir Begovic last season – he will not want to give up the number one spot easily.

Jermaine Defoe

Striker

Jermaine Defoe maybe a bit long in the tooth nowadays but there is no doubt that he has not lost his ambition. He was sorely disappointed to have missed out on selection for the world cup in 2018 and this is a direct reflection on where he see's himself. He has scored 162 goals in his career and there is no doubt that he has more to come. Eddie Howe uses him well off the bench and it will be interesting to see what he can do again this season.

AFC Bournemouth 17/18 Season

Bournemouth fans can again be happy with another solid season in the English Premiership, Eddie Howe has done a fantastic job at the club. Last season was their third in the top flight and they managed to pull off some shock wins that will keep the fans very happy indeed, such as 3-0 against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

For a team that seems like they are favorites to go down, each season they surprise everyone. They finished twelfth last season and Eddie Howe seemed disappointed at that, which says a lot for where he is aiming for. Fans were treated to a great EFL Cup Quarterfinal against Chelsea where the game looked like it was all set for extra time, but a chance goal at the very end of extra time saw them miss out on the Semi Final.

AFC Bournemouth 2017/18 Top 5 Goals

Iconic AFC Bournemouth Kits

Bournemouth 1960’s

Dickie Dowsett

Dickie Dowsett played for Bournemouth in the early Sixties and was switched from winger to a forward position which turned out to be a genius move. Dickie went on to score 79 goals for the club. He is a club legend and the club badge has displayed a profile of his head since 1972.

Bournemouth 2016/17

Highest League Finish Ever.

Bournemouth was nearly out of the league back in 2009, they had financial issues and were heading towards the conference. What a turnaround, they climbed back up the divisions and in 2015 were playing with the big boys. Always favorites to be relegated they finished ninth in the season of 2016/17 and silenced the pundits completely.

Bournemouth 2018/19

2018/19 Current Home kit

Eddie Howe has kept suprising his critics and he was visually disappointed with where the team finished last season. It is clear the Manager has great ambitions here and the team has always responded well to him, the board has supported him well in the break also, breaking the club record on new signing Jefferson Lerma. New Season, New Kit and Great New Players.

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